monday.

we had a spontaneous stop at the tattoo parlour, then had to run back and switch rooms at the hotel. the adventure cycling association includes monday night in the hotel with the tour purchase, in a premium room…which i thought i already had. the only difference was the bed and it was on the fourth floor. uncle billy’s is an interesting place. if it was anymore expensive, i would be complaining about certain things. it’s not though. if you’re looking for a place to stay and aren’t picky, it’s fine.

so. we run out, get matching pineapple tattoos, then run back, switch rooms, and run downstairs to meet with the rest of the tour group. they’re all dressed up and ready to go. i love riding in comfortable clothes, but i’ve never been really comfortable in skin tight cycling gear. maybe a club fit jersey, but that’s about it. i had purchased a pair of cycling shorts for the ride, and i wasn’t excited to get to wear them. they fit though. i did try them on. so i ride in some walkshorts and tank tops, psh, whatever. i can hear it now: what about saddle sores? i’ve never had a saddle sore on my brooks flyer special. sure, the breakin time wasn’t the most comfortable, but now I wouldn’t trade it for anything. i could ride for centuries(and have) without getting sores, but enough about that. i’ll keep my butt out of your business.

the tour group is composed of twelve riders and two adventure cycling leaders. everyone has different experience levels and touring experience. some people toured in the 1980’s, some toured every year for the past few years. it was a good mix of people and according to the tour organizer, this is a special mix of people due to the amount of both couples and women. tonight at eight is the last chance to stow anything unnecessary in the luggage that is going to storage, and tomorrow is the beginning of the tour. anticipation for the ride to start is heavy with us.